Colt Walker .44
black powder revolver
This sequence shows the firing of a reproduction Colt Walker .44 calibre black powder revolver (made by Uberti of Italy). This is a large and heavy gun that can be held very steadily (the weight helps damp-down movement). Both when it was first produced in the mid 1840's and still to this day, the Colt Walker holds the record for being the black powder repeating gun, firing the most powerful charge. As can be seen the amount of recoil is quite large and even with two hands on the gun, getting off a quick second shot takes a lot of practice. The main limiting factors in determining accuracy with this sort of gun are, ensuring that all black powder charges are of the same weight and the rather primitive sights fitted (to be fair, the gun was only ever intended as a close-quarter defence weapon). See also the still photo of this same gun being fired. Notice how the loading lever drops down during recoil, this was a serious problem, as the rod could enter the cylinder and prevent its turning for the next shot. In use, the most common modification to prevent the lever dropping, was to secure it to the barrel with a rawhide band. Note also the large amount of smoke produced on firing: the 'Fog of War' no less.
